


Ahead of him a bee buzzes

by humanyubel



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: ?? - Freeform, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ambiguous/Open Ending, DSOD/Transcend Game Spoilers, Experimental Style, Gen, Love Confessions, M/M, One-Sided Attraction, Possibly Unrequited Love, Short
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-01
Updated: 2016-10-01
Packaged: 2018-08-18 19:53:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8173973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/humanyubel/pseuds/humanyubel
Summary: You dreamily smiled,Dress down.Before you become the universe to me,I'm melting, melting, melting you.- "Dress Down" Kaoru Akimoto





	

He touches the golden static edges of heaven with his outstretched hand,

He has sacrificed god for lesser than this,

Has rewritten the future once before and intends to do so many times,

He tastes white noise on his tongue, the air is dry and feels like a vacuum for an unknown number of minutes.

 

Ahead of him a bee buzzes.

 

When it clears up he is in a land far away from time and mortals such as himself. This is no place for him but he is there.

 

He feels each step and the way his thick black boots sink into the loose sand

The sun beats down on him but he continues on. Little has stopped him in the past and little will stop him now.

 

A falcon circles overhead and follows him. Kaiba pays it no attention for it does nothing to impede him. It follows him like an old friend. Kaiba unconsciously follows it.

 

When he arrives at the palace no one prevents him from seeing the pharaoh. It was as if he had expected him to come or knew of his arrival perhaps before Kaiba himself knew. 

 

The thought of his rival waiting for him fills him with swarms of fireflies. 

 

He had gone where Kaiba could not follow and yet he had waited, having faith in his rival. Knowing he would come for him.  Kaiba supposes this is friendship. He knew this feeling or one like it, Atem had taught it to him.

 

He is alone and shadows frame his dark face. Kaiba can not see the rubies of his gaze but feels their weight nonetheless. He focuses on the smile he sees. Stark white contrasts against the beautiful brown of his skin.

 

“Atem..” perhaps it’s said in prayer? Though Kaiba had no stock in Gods even after possessing one himself, he had utter faith in his rival. 

 

“Kaiba.” Atem’s rich voice responds. Kaiba shivers. This was real. His rival was real. 

 

“Duel me. If I win you will return with me. If you win then you decide your reward.” Kaiba decides being straight to the point as usual would invoke a reaction from his rival. 

 

Kaiba intends to win (as he always had).

 

Kaiba has trouble understanding himself at times but he understands his rival. As if Atem were a part of Kaiba’s soul. 

 

Atem’s voice is warm, golden honey. “I accept.”

 

He stands from his throne and in his own body he was still shorter than Kaiba. Even Yugi had grown taller. Atem was unchanging, a constant and he was perfect. Mind sharp and eyes mysterious and kind. Unbelievably brave and willing to do what he knows it right.

 

Atem is already prepared for the duel and Kaiba trembles, desire flooding through his veins. He had to have known. Atem had thought of him if only once. 

 

It’d be a flat out bold faced lie to say he hadn’t thought of his rival constantly since his departure. So Kaiba does not speak.

 

Though Yugi had succeeded Atem as King of Games the boy did not hold Kaiba’s interest. Yugi Mutou was a superb duelist but he wasn’t his rival. Yugi had offered him friendship but the man that challenged him and made him strive to be a better man stood before him in his full  153cm glory.

 

Light illuminates the throne room. Holy holy holy holy holy holy holy holy.

 

Despite being a dead man Atem comes to life in their duel. Kaiba plays his Blue Eyes White Dragon and later towards the end his Deep Eyes White Dragon. He had not looked down once to see which cards he was playing. He knew his deck inside and out. His faithful Blue Eyes responded to his call.

 

It’s nearly a tie and his choice of card at the end seems to surprise Atem but Atem wins once more. 

 

In this plane he can clearly feel Blue Eyes wrap around him comfortingly. He closes his eyes when he feels hot pressure behind his eyelids.

 

“It’s customary to look at your opponent even when they win.”

 

“What do you want as your reward?”

 

He had made a promise, had put his life on the line in this duel. This duel as much of a struggle between Atem and himself as it was him against himself. 

 

“I want you to tell me how you feel.”

  
  


Kaiba stiffens, frozen at those words. He’s momentarily confused, unsure of what Atem means. 

 

“I…” he falters. The walls feel as though they’re closing in on him. His ears pop and his vision goes black, bursts of static before his eyes. So he does the only thing he can do to combat it.

 

He shouts loud enough to make the palace shake. Loud enough that he feels as though his lungs will burst free up and out of his mouth.

 

Salt pours from his parted lips.

 

“Other than Mokuba you are the one I care about most in my world and in this world! I respect you! You are the only worthy one! You are the only one!”

 

Kaiba studies Atem’s face. Dark brown skin free of any blemishes save for a few faint freckles, crimson eyes lined in thick thick kohl. His eyelids painted turquoise. Atem’s eyes are sad for a single moment. His plump scarlet lips part. 

 

“Seto...We will always be friends. You were my first friend that wasn’t Yugi’s first. Though everyone was my friend you were one I could call just my own. I had missed our duels together as much as I had missed Yugi’s smiles. But…”

 

He lets his words sink in.

 

“You do not belong in this world, not yet. I love you dearly, my rival...my friend. But we must part.”

 

“You didn’t even say good bye last time.” Kaiba isn’t sure why he lets these words slip out. They sting him like salt in a still fresh wound.

 

“I didn’t mean to hurt you...or anyone else.” Atem’s eyes are moist but Kaiba can’t mock him for it.

 

“Seto, this isn’t goodbye. I will be waiting for you like I will be waiting for all of my friends.”

 

Kaiba wants to hear him say it. He isn’t unable to understand but he wants to hear it so that it will stay with him forever.

 

“Then what is it?”

 

“Duel again?” Atem offers, head tilting to one side. Kaiba hears his earrings clink softly, traces the movement of the teen’s blonde bangs. There’s a smile upon his lips. And Kaiba’s breath catches. 

 

A smart comment was halfway out of his mouth (“You better not get lazy while I’m gone. It’d be pathetic for you to be no challenge when I get back. You wouldn’t be worthy.”).

 

Atem’s form flickers before his eyes. Everything is like t.v. static around the edges. 

 

Kaiba remembers how his brother had run to him at the end of Duelist Kingdom. Kaiba dashes toward Atem. When he’s but a few steps away he drops to his knees and slides the rest of the way. They’re almost the same height like this.

 

He wraps his arms around Atem and clings to his small form. He wants to feel this. He would not let anything go unsaid or unfelt this time. Atem’s form crackles, or perhaps it’s his own that does that?

 

Atem seems to have expected this. It figured his rival would know him better than Kaiba knew himself. Atem wraps his arms around Kaiba. He runs his hand through the back of Kaiba’s hair in a surprisingly soothing gesture.

 

“Atem.” 

 

“Seto?”

 

“Atem.” He chokes out once more. He isn’t sure what to say for once. But he wants to say everything so that he knows.

 

“I know.” 

 

Kaiba takes in everything. The hard stone floor against his knees, the feeling of his face pressed into Atem’s collarbone. The fragrance of lotus flowers, the feel of Atem’s purple cape. Even through his shirt he feels it. He hears Atem’s heart beat.

 

The world flickers out.

 

“I love you.” Kaiba says as he awakens. 

 

His eyes go into focus as he looks around the room. His technology had given him the power he needed to see his rival once more. Or perhaps, he had given the technology the power it needed.

Kaiba leaves the room, intending to never visit it again. He goes to his brother and lives.

  
  


_ Seto, this isn’t goodbye. I will be waiting for you like I will be waiting for all of my friends. _

 

_ Duel again? _

  
  
  
  
  



End file.
